When all the men of Israel saw this man, they retreated ¹  from his presence and were very afraid.

All those who were in trouble or owed someone money or were discontented ¹  gathered around ²  him, and he became their leader. He had about four hundred men with him.

Then David instructed his men, “Each of you strap on your sword!” So each one strapped on his sword, and David also strapped on his sword. About four hundred men followed David up, while two hundred stayed behind with the equipment.

Any one of you that I do not cut off from my altar, I will cause your ¹  eyes to fail ²  and will cause you grief. ³  All of those born to your family ⁴  will die in the prime of life. ⁵ 

Be strong and act like men, you Philistines, or else you will wind up serving the Hebrews the way they have served you! Act like men and fight!”

The Lord said to Samuel, “Do as they say ¹  and install a king over them.” Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Each of you go back to his own city.”

Then someone from the army informed him, “Your father put the army under a strict oath ¹  saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food today!’ That is why the army is tired.”

So Saul took three thousand select men from all Israel and went to find ¹  David and his men in the region of ²  the rocks of the mountain goats. ³ 

There was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel. This man was very wealthy; ¹  he owned three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. At that time he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.

The man’s name was Nabal, ¹  and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was both wise ²  and beautiful, but the man was harsh and his deeds were evil. He was a Calebite.

David settled with Achish in Gath, along with his men and their families. ¹  David had with him his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail the Carmelite, Nabal’s widow.

David and four hundred men continued the pursuit, but two hundred men who were too exhausted to cross the Wadi Besor stayed there.

If a man sins against a man, one may appeal to God on his behalf. But if a man sins against the Lord, who then will intercede for him?” But Eli’s sons ¹  would not listen to their father, for the Lord had decided ²  to kill them.

Then Saul said, “Scatter out among the army and say to them, ‘Each of you bring to me your ox and sheep and slaughter them in this spot and eat. But don’t sin against the Lord by eating the blood.” So that night each one brought his ox and slaughtered it there. ¹ 

¹ Now David was the son of this Ephrathite named Jesse from Bethlehem ²  in Judah. He had eight sons, and in Saul’s days he was old and well advanced in years. ³ 

The men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who is coming up? He does so ¹  to defy Israel. But the king will make the man who can strike him down very wealthy! He will give him his daughter in marriage, and he will make his father’s house exempt from tax obligations in Israel.”

Saul went on one side of the mountain, while David and his men went on the other side of the mountain. David was hurrying to get away from Saul, but Saul and his men were surrounding David and his men so they could capture them.

But all the evil and worthless men among those who had gone with David said, “Since they didn’t go with us, ¹  we won’t give them any of the loot we retrieved! They may take only their wives and children. Let them lead them away and be gone!”

This man Elkanah went up with all his family to make the yearly sacrifice to the Lord and to keep his vow,

He watches over ¹  his holy ones, ²  but the wicked are made speechless in the darkness, for it is not by one’s own strength that one prevails.